Dr. Matt Togna shows up for students — to their games, their concerts, their plays, and, of course, in the classroom, where he teaches Upper School science. As a 10th Grade advisor, JV golf coach, and assistant varsity swim coach, Dr. Togna believes this presence — of being an active supporter and participant in everything the students do — is an essential quality of teaching. It shows compassion. It’s another way of telling students you care, that you’re there for them. “I just show up to things,” says Dr. Togna, who came to Collegiate in 2019. “That’s what makes any school environment exciting. It’s not just about what you’re doing in the classroom. It’s about all of the extracurriculars. I love seeing my students — the whole student body, really — grow through everything a school has to offer. I love that, and it’s an honor to be a part of that.” In the final days of the 2023-24 school year, Dr. Togna sat down with Spark to discuss the joys of working at Collegiate and the importance of teaching life lessons in and outside of the classroom.
What makes teaching at Collegiate so special?
We have so many different resources at our disposal at Collegiate that allow us to really make the subjects we’re teaching come to life. I’m very fortunate to have all the materials I need whenever I need them — things that ensure the students get the most out of each class. We have the opportunity to make every class different and unique; we’re never bound to a strict lecture-style class. I like to get in the lab and make chemistry come to life. That’s a really important part of my class, and I am grateful to have the tools to make that happen.
What do you hope your students take with them when they leave your classroom?
At the end of each school year, I always tell my students that what we were learning wasn’t just about chemistry. When they leave my class, I hope that they come away with an understanding of what it means to work through challenges and overcome academic adversity. I also like to talk about how that translates into other classes and other big life challenges they might encounter. There are moments when, even though you’re focusing on chemistry, you can help students see be- yond the walls of the classroom.
That is one of the things I love about being a teacher and a coach and an advisor here at Collegiate: the opportunities that arise where you are able to help students become better people. My job as an educator is to help students see difficult situations as moments of growth.
What are you most proud of as a teacher?
I’ve been teaching for a long enough time now where I’ll get letters from former students of mine telling me what they’re doing now. Those random, out-of-the-blue emails are some of the best moments that you never expect. But when they do pop up — when someone five years later tells you the kind of impact you had on them — they’re really meaningful. Those moments remind me why I’m a teacher. I want each student to know that I care about them as individuals — that they’ve been seen and cared for.
What have your students taught you?
They teach me something every day. I love what I do because I get to work with students. They challenge me intellectually and they remind me that everyone learns differently and that I’ve got to constantly refine my lessons to reach every student in every class. Their eagerness, their readiness to learn — that inspires me, and it’s what I thrive on. They also keep me up to date on all the relevant slang of the up-and- coming generations.
Talk about the importance of being present for each student’s full academic experience.
One of the reasons I came to Collegiate was that it was very clear to me that faculty and staff fully immerse themselves in the School. To work with professionals who care about every aspect of a student’s education — not just in the classroom — is really special. That kind of atmosphere challenges you to do the same thing. To show up, to immerse yourself in Collegiate as a whole. It’s about being involved in the SCA, it’s about helping plan events, it’s about watching students succeed everywhere — on stage, on the field, in the classroom. Being a teacher means being present for students, and Collegiate does that really well.